The psychological terms for taking in info, retaining it, and later getting it back are:
encoding, storage, and retrieval
Short-term memory is an intermediate memory stage where info in held before it is stored or forgotten. The newer concept of working memory.....
clarifies the idea of short-term memory by focusing on the active processing that occurs in this stage.
Rehearsal, the conscious repetition of information a person wants to remember, is part of:
When tested immediately after viewing a list of words people tend to recall the 1st and last items more readily than those in the middle. When retested after a delay, they are more likely to recall:
the 1st items on the list
Memory aids that use visual imagery, peg-words, or other organizational devices are called:
Organizing info into broad categories, which are then divided into subcategories, is known as:
Sensory information is initially recorded in our sensory memory. This memory may be visual (______ memory) or auditory (______ memory)
Long-term potentiation (LTP) seems to provide a neural basis for learning and memory. LTP refers to:
An increase in a synapse's firing potential after brief, rapid, stimulation.
Amnesia following hippocampus damage typically leaves people unable to learn new facts or recall recent events. However, they may be able to learn new skills, such as riding a bicycle, which is an _______ memory.
A psychologist who asks you to write down as many objects as you can remember having seen a few minutes earlier is testing your:
Specific odors, visual images, emotions, or other associations that help us access a memory are examples of:
Our tendency to recall experiences consistent w/ our current emotions is called:
Activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as the seven digits of a phone # while dialing, before the info is stored or forgotten.
The relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences.
A newer understanding of short-term memory that focuses on conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information, and of information retrieved from long-term memory.
unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learned information, such as word meanings.
the conscious repetition of information, either to maintain it in consciousness or to encode it for storage.
the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice.
mental pictures; a powerful aid to effortful processing, especially when combined with encoding.
[nih-MON-iks] memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices.
a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic or picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenths of a second.
a momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds.
Long-Term Potentiation (LTP)
an increase in a synapse's firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. Believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory.
retention independent of conscious recollection. (Also called nondeclarative memory.)
memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and "declare." (Also called declarative memory.)
a neural center that is located in the limbic system; helps process explicit memories for storage.
a measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test.
a measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test.
a measure of memory that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material for a second time.
the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one's perception, memory, or response.
that eerie sense that "I've experienced this before." Cues from the current situation may subconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience.
the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one's current good or bad mood.
What would be the most effective strategy to learn and retain a list of names of key historical figures for a week? For a year?
For a week: Make the names personally meaningful. For a year: Overlearn the list and space out rehearsals over the course of several weeks.
Maria has always loved to wear winter clothing. The sensation of being bundled up makes her feel safe and secure. How might her preference be related to her January birth in Chicago?
Maria's first few months of life were spent wrapped in warm clothing in the bitter cold of a Chicago winter. As an infant, she may have learned to associate winter clothing with her parents' sensitive caregiving (feeling safe and secure). Maria could not form explicit memories of these experiences because of her immature hippocampus and verbal skills. Instead, an implicit memory retrieved from her cerebellum may be triggering this vague sense of comfort.
When you feel sad, why might it help to look at pictures that reawaken some of your best memories?
Memories are stored within a web of many associations, one of which is mood. When you recall fond moments from your past, you stimulate the "happy-memories" associations. By deliberately activating these threads of the web, you may experience moodcongruent memory and recall other happy moments, which will likely improve your mood and positively influence your interpretation of current events.
When forgetting is due to encoding failure, meaningless information has not been transferred from
short-term memory into long-term memory.
Ebbinghaus' "forgetting curve" shows that after an initial decline, memory for novel information tends to
The hour before sleep is a good time to memorize information because going to sleep after learning new material minimizes
Freud proposed that painful or unacceptable memories are self-censored, or blocked from consciousness, through a mechanism called
One reason false memories form is our tendency to fill in memory gaps with our assumptions about events. This tendency is an example of
the misinformation effect.
We may recognize a face in the crowd but be unable to recall where we know the person from. This is an example of
in psychoanalytic theory, the basic defense mechanism that banishes anxiety-arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories from consciousness.
attributing to the wrong source an event we have experienced, heard about, read about, or imagined. (Also called source misattribution.) Source amnesia, along with the misinformation effect, is at the heart of many false memories.
What you know today seems to be what you have always known. Explain what this means.
Our memories are often modified by our subsequent experiences, thoughts, and expectations. We tend to fill in gaps with reasonable guesses that eventually feel like real memories. Misinformation may color the construction of retrieved memories. If you have a vivid imagination, you may be especially susceptible to incorporating imagined events into your memories. In addition, motivated forgetting may lead you to revise memories to align them with your current self-concept. We are largely unaware of this memory revision process, which is why "what we remember today" seems to be "what we have always remembered."
Eliza's family loves to tell the story of how she "stole the show" as a 2-year-old, dancing at her aunt's wedding reception. Infantile amnesia should have prevented her from forming a memory, yet Eliza can recall the event clearly. How is this possible?
Eliza's immature hippocampus and lack of verbal skills prevented her from encoding an explicit memory of her aunt's wedding reception at the age of two. Instead, it's likely that Eliza learned information (from hearing the story repeatedly) that she eventually constructed into a very convincing (yet false) explicit memory.
What—given the commonality of source amnesia—might life be like if we remembered all our waking experiences and all our dreams?
Real experiences would be confused with those we dreamed. When meeting someone, we might therefore be unsure whether we were reacting to something they previously had done or to something we dreamed they had done. William Dement (1999, pg. 298) noted that this "would put a great burden on your sanity. . . . I truly believe that the wall of memory is a blessed protection."
To construct meaning from our external environment, we organize and interpret sensory information. This is the process of
Subliminal stimuli, such as undetectably faint sights or sounds, are
below the absolute threshold for conscious awareness.
Weber's law states that for a difference to be perceived, two stimuli must differ by
a constant minimum percentage.
Sensory adaptation has survival benefits because it helps us focus on
important changes in the environment.
The physical characteristic of light that determines the color we experience, such as blue or green, is
Cones are the eye's receptor cells that are especially sensitive to _______ light and are responsible for our ________ vision.
The brain cells that respond maximally to certain bars, edges, and angles are called
The brain's ability to process many aspects of an object or problem simultaneously is called
Two theories together account for color vision. The Young-Helmholtz theory shows that the eye contains ________, and the Hering theory accounts for the nervous system's having ________.
three types of color receptors; opponent-process cells
the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment.
the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events.
analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain's integration of sensory information.
information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations.
the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them.
the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time.
the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one's perception, memory, or response.
the minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50 percent of the time. We experience the difference threshold as a just noticeable difference (or jnd).
the principle that, to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage (rather than a constant amount).
the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next. Electromagnetic wavelengths vary from the short blips of cosmic rays to the long pulses of radio transmission.
the dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light; what we know as the color names blue, green, and so forth.
the amount of energy in a light or sound wave, which we perceive as brightness or loudness, as determined by the wave's amplitude.
the light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information.
the process by which the eye's lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina.
retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray; necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don't respond.
retinal receptor cells that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions. The cones detect fine detail and give rise to color sensations.
the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a "blind" spot because no receptor cells are located there.
nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of a stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement.
the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain's natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision. Contrasts with the step-by-step (serial) processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving.
Young-Helmholtz trichromatic (three-color) theory
the theory that the retina contains three different color receptors—one most sensitive to red, one to green, one to blue—which, when stimulated in combination, can produce the perception of any color.
the theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, yellow-blue, white-black) enable color vision. For example, some cells are stimulated by green and inhibited by red; others are stimulated by red and inhibited by green.
Before reading this question, you probably didn't notice the sensation of your shoes touching your feet. Yet it's likely you notice them now. Why?
Before this question brought the touch of your shoes into your conscious awareness, you were experiencing sensory adaptation. The shoes provide constant stimulation, which triggers fewer and fewer neurons to fire, until the sensation recedes into the background, unnoticed. Sensory adaptation allows us to focus on changing stimuli, which are typically most important for survival. Without this adaptive reaction, we would be bombarded with incoming information and would have difficulty functioning.
What mental processes allow you to perceive a lemon as yellow?
The lemon itself has no color; your brain constructs this perception of color in two stages. First, the lemon reflects light energy into your eyes, where it is transformed into neural messages. Three sets of cones, each sensitive to a different light frequency (red, blue, and green) process color. In this case, the light energy stimulates both red-sensitive and greensensitive cones. In the second stage, a network of opponent-process cells sensitive to paired opposites of color (red/green, black/white, and yellow/blue) evaluates the incoming neural messages as they pass through your optic nerve to the thalamus and visual cortex. When the yellow-sensitive opponent-process cells are stimulated, you identify the lemon as yellow.
The frequency of sound waves determines their pitch. The _______ the waves are, the lower their frequency is and the _______ their pitch.
The snail-shaped tube in the inner ear, where sound waves are converted into neural activity, is called the
The vestibular sense monitors the body's position and movement. Vestibular sense receptors are located in the
The gate-control theory of pain proposes that
small spinal cord nerve fibers conduct most pain signals.
the number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time (for example, per second).
the chamber between the eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones (hammer, anvil, and stirrup) that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea's oval window.
[KOHK-lee-uh] a coiled, bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear through which sound waves trigger nerve impulses.
the innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs.
[kin-ehs-THEE-sehs] the system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts.
the theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological "gate" that blocks pain signals or allows them to pass on to the brain. The "gate" is opened by the activity of pain signals traveling up small nerve fibers and is closed by activity in larger fibers or by information coming from the brain.
the principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste.
Why do you feel a little dizzy immediately after a roller coaster ride?
The same sensory features that allow you to perceive the world accurately can also, on occasion, generate false perceptions. Your vestibular sense regulates balance and body positioning through kinesthetic receptors triggered by fluid in your inner ear. Wobbly legs and a spinning world are signs that these receptors are still responding to the ride's turbulence. As your vestibular sense adjusts to solid ground, your balance will be restored.
Why might it be helpful for people with chronic pain to meditate or exercise?
Because we feel pain in our brain, we may diminish the experience of pain by changing the messages sent to the brain. Gate-control theory proposes that our pain sensory receptors send signals to the spinal cord, which relays messages to the brain. Small fibers in the spinal cord open the gate to pain; large fibers close the gate, blocking those signals. Meditation triggers large-fiber activity by shifting our attention elsewhere (toward breathing or a repeated word); exercise triggers that activity by generating competing stimulation and endorphin release.
In listening to a concert, you follow the lead singer and perceive the other musicians as accompaniment; this illustrates the organizing principle of
Our tendencies to fill in the gaps and to perceive a pattern as continuous are two different examples of the organizing principle called
Examples of monocular cues, which are available to either eye alone, include interposition and
Perceiving tomatoes as consistently red, despite shifting illumination, is an example of
After surgery to restore vision, patients who had been blind from birth had difficulty
recognizing objects by sight.
Experiments in which volunteers wear glasses that displace or invert their visual fields show that, after a period of disorientation, people learn to function quite well. This ability is called
Our perceptual set influences what we perceive. This mental predisposition reflects our
experiences, assumptions, and expectations.
an organized whole. Gestalt psychologists emphasized our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes.
the organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground).
the ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; allows us to judge distance.
a binocular cue for perceiving depth: By comparing images from the retinas in the two eyes, the brain computes distance—the greater the disparity (difference) between the two images, the closer the object.
depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone.
perceiving objects as unchanging (having consistent shapes, size, lightness, and color) even as illumination and retinal images change.
perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the object.
in vision, the ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field.
Extrasensory Perception (ESP)
the controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input, includes telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition.
Why do you perceive a lemon as the same shade of yellow whether you view it in sunlight or in dim lighting?
The sunlit lemon reflects more light than the dimly-lit lemon. Nevertheless, thanks to color constancy, you experience both lemons as yellow because you integrate sensations of light reflecting off all other objects surrounding the lemon into your perception of its color.
Two forms of associative learning are classical conditioning, in which the organism associates ________, and operant conditioning, in which the organism associates ________________.
two stimuli; a response and a consequence.
In Pavlov's experiments, dogs learned to salivate in response to a tone. The tone is therefore a(an)
Dogs can learn to respond (by salivating, for example) to one kind of stimulus (a circle, for example) and not to another (a square). This process is an example of
Early behaviorists believed that for conditioning to occur, the unconditioned stimulus (US) must immediately follow the neutral stimulus (NS). demonstrated this was not always so.
Garcia and Koelling's taste-aversion studies.
Taste-aversion research has shown that animals develop aversions to certain tastes but not to sights or sounds. This finding supports
Darwin's principle that natural selection favors traits that aid survival.
After Watson and Rayner classically conditioned a small child named Albert to fear a white rat, the child later showed fear in response to a rabbit, a dog, and a sealskin coat. Little Albert's fear of objects resembling the rat illustrates
learning that certain events occur together. The events may be two stimuli (as in classical conditioning) or a response and its consequences (as in operant conditioning).
a type of learning in which one learns to link two or more stimuli and anticipate events.
the view that psychology (1) should be an objective science that (2) studies behavior without reference to mental processes. Most research psychologists today agree with (1) but not with (2).
Neutral Stimulus (NS)
in classical conditioning, a stimulus that elicits no response before conditioning.
Unconditioned Response (UR)
in classical conditioning, the unlearned, naturally occurring response to the unconditioned stimulus (US), such as salivation when food is in the mouth.
Unconditioned Stimulus (US)
in classical conditioning, a stimulus that unconditionally—naturally and automatically—triggers a response.
Conditioned Response (CR)
in classical conditioning, the learned response to a previously neutral (but now conditioned) stimulus (CS).
Conditioned Stimulus (CS)
in classical conditioning, a previously neutral stimulus that, after association with an unconditioned stimulus (US), comes to trigger a conditioned response.
in classical conditioning, the initial stage, when one links a neutral stimulus and an unconditioned stimulus so that the neutral stimulus begins triggering the conditioned response. In operant conditioning, the strengthening of a reinforced response.
a procedure in which the conditioned stimulus in one conditioning experience is paired with a new neutral stimulus, creating a second (often weaker) conditioned stimulus. For example, an animal that has learned that a tone predicts food might then learn that a light predicts the tone and begin responding to the light alone. (Also called second-order conditioning.)
the diminishing of a conditioned response; occurs in classical conditioning when an unconditioned stimulus (US) does not follow a conditioned stimulus (CS); occurs in operant conditioning when a response is no longer reinforced.
the tendency, once a response has been conditioned, for stimuli similar to the conditioned stimulus to elicit similar responses.
in classical conditioning, the learned ability to distinguish between a conditioned stimulus and stimuli that do not signal an unconditioned stimulus.
"Sex sells!" is a common saying in advertising. Using classical conditioning terms, explain how sexual images in advertisements can condition your response to a product.
The sexual image is a US that triggers the UR of interest or arousal. The product is an NS. An advertisement pairs the product with a sexual image. Over time, the product becomes a CS that triggers the CR of interest or arousal.
Salivating in response to a tone paired with food is a (an) _________; pressing a bar to obtain food is a (an) __________.
respondent behavior; operant behavior
Thorndike's law of effect became the basis for operant conditioning and the "behavioral technology" developed by
One way to change behavior is to reward natural behaviors in small steps, as they get closer and closer to the desired behavior. This process is called
Your dog is barking so loudly that it's making your ears ring. You clap your hands, the dog stops barking, your ears stop ringing, and you think to yourself, "I'll have to do that when he barks again." The end of the barking was for you a
The partial reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response at unpredictable times is a
A medieval proverb notes that "a burnt child dreads the fire." In operant conditioning, the burning would be an example of a
We now know that cognitive processes (thoughts, perceptions, and expectations) play an important role in learning. Evi dence comes from studies in which rats
develop cognitive maps.
Rats carried passively through a maze and given no reward later ran the maze as well as rats that had received food rewards for running the maze. The rats that had learned without reinforcement demonstrate
learning that certain events occur together. The events may be two stimuli (as in classical conditioning) or a response and its consequences (as in operant conditioning).
a type of learning in which behavior is strengthened if followed by a reinforcer or diminished if followed by a punisher.
Law of Effect
Thorndike's principle that behaviors followed by favorable consequences become more likely.
in operant conditioning research, a chamber (also known as a Skinner box) containing a bar or key that an animal can manipulate to obtain a food or water reinforcer; attached devices record the animal's rate of bar pressing or key pecking.
an operant conditioning procedure in which reinforcers guide behavior toward closer and closer approximations of the desired behavior.
increasing behaviors by presenting positive stimuli, such as food. A positive reinforcer is any stimulus that, when presented after a response, strengthens the response.
increasing behaviors by stopping or reducing negative stimuli. A negative reinforcer is any stimulus that, when removed after a response, strengthens the response. (Note: negative reinforcement is not punishment.)
a stimulus that gains its reinforcing power through its association with a primary reinforcer; also known as a secondary reinforcer.
Partial (intermittent) Reinforcement
reinforcing a response only part of the time; results in slower acquisition of a response but much greater resistance to extinction than does continuous reinforcement.
in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified number of responses.
in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response after an unpredictable number of responses.
in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response only after a specified time has elapsed.
in operant conditioning, a reinforcement schedule that reinforces a response at unpredictable time intervals.
a mental representation of the layout of one's environment. For example, after exploring a maze, rats act as if they have learned a cognitive map of it.
learning that occurs but is not apparent until there is an incentive to demonstrate it.
Children learn many social behaviors by imitating parents and other models. This type of learning is called
Parents are powerful models of behavior. They are most effective in getting their children to imitate them if
their words and actions are consistent.
Bandura believes that modeling is not automatic. Whether a child will imitate a model depends in part on the
rewards and punishments received by the model.
There is considerable controversy about the effects of heavy exposure to TV programs showing violence. However, most experts agree that repeated viewing of TV violence
dulls the viewer's sensitivity to violence
frontal lobe neurons that fire when performing certain actions or when observing another doing so. The brain's mirroring of another's action may enable imitation and empathy.
Adoption studies seek to understand genetic influences on personality. They do this mainly by
evaluating whether adopted children's personalities more closely resemble those of their adoptive parents or their biological parents.
Personality tends to be stable over time. For example,
temperament seems to be biologically based and tends to remain stable throughout life.
Evolutionary psychologists are most likely to focus on
natural selection of the fittest adaptations.
the study of the relative power and limits of genetic and environmental influences on behavior.
DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid)
a complex molecule containing the genetic information that makes up the chromosomes.
the biochemical units of heredity that make up the chromosomes; a segment of DNA capable of synthesizing a protein.
twins who develop from a single fertilized egg that splits in two, creating two genetically identical organisms.
twins who develop from separate fertilized eggs. They are genetically no closer than brothers and sisters, but they share a fetal environment.
the interplay that occurs when the effect of one factor (such as environment) depends on another factor (such as heredity).
the study of the roots of behavior and mental processes, using the principles of natural selection.
the principle that, among the range of inherited trait variations, those that lead to increased reproduction and survival will most likely be passed on to succeeding generations.
in psychology, the biologically and socially influenced characteristics by which people define male and female.
Normal levels of stimulation are important during infancy and early childhood because during these years,
experience activates and preserves neural connections that might otherwise die from disuse.
Personal space, the portable buffer zone people like to maintain around their bodies, differs from culture to culture. These differences are examples of
Individualist cultures tend to value _______; collectivist cultures tend to value _____.
Human developmental processes tend to _______ from one group to another because we are members of _______.
be the same; the same species
As a consequence of the gender assigned to us by society, we develop a gender identity, which means that we
have a sense of being male or female.
the enduring behaviors, ideas, attitudes, values, and traditions shared by a group of people and transmitted from one generation to the next.
giving priority to one's own goals over group goals and defining one's identity in terms of personal attributes rather than group identifications.
giving priority to group goals (often those of the extended family or work group) and defining one's identity accordingly.
the sex chromosome found in both men and women. Females have two X chromosomes; males have one. An X chromosome from each parent produces a female child.
the sex chromosome found only in males. When paired with an X chromosome from the mother, it produces a male child.
the most important of the male sex hormones. Both males and females have it, but the additional testosterone in males stimulates the growth of the male sex organs in the fetus and the development of the male sex characteristics during puberty.
a set of explanations (norms) about a social position, defining how those in the position ought to behave.